The Painful Truth
by kittendealer
Summary: SPOILER ALERT! This OS picks up right at the end of the last episode of season 3. My view on what could happen next.
1. Chapter 1

**Author's note: I just couldn't go on without wrapping up a certain kind of closure to that last episode. So I am offering you the next few scenes as I see it, or should I say, hope could come next. I wrote all day to finish it for you as soon as possible (ok it was also a lot for me I have to admit :)) Make sure you watched the last episode before you read it though. Enjoy!**

* * *

"It's all true… It's all true…" She whispers in fright, slowly backing away from him.

"Detective?"

Lucifer is at a loss. Why is she looking at him this way, as if she were afraid of him? Is it because he killed Pierce? Shouldn't she understand why he did this? Taking a step forward, he lifts a hand towards her as if it could prevent her from walking further away from him.

That's when he sees it. His hand.

 _His Devil's form…_

 _No! It can't be!_

He raises slowly his eyes back to her, to her horror-stricken face. He can feel his breathing quicken and his head start to spin with the devastating feelings of hopelessness and fear that are now overcoming him.

She is looking at him. The real him. And she is terrified!

He knows, in that instant, at the way her beautiful blue eyes are finally seeing the monster he is, that it's all over. He has lost her. Forever…

He sees her take a few more steps back until she hits the first step of the stair with her heel. She falls backwards and brakes her fall with a hand, only to collapse on the steps in an awkward sitting position, eyes bulging and visibly panting.

Lucifer instinctively backs away from her, not wanting to traumatise her any more than she already is. He finally has the presence of mind of putting back his glamour over his true form. He continues to retreat, with his hands up to show her he doesn't mean her any harm. It seems to be working, for she isn't moving anymore, instead watching him like he is someone she doesn't recognise and dread.

What could he say or do to make it right again? No, there is nothing to be done now. It is too late. He missed his window to tell her the truth, to come clean, and ease the news in a way she could accept who he is. He has been a coward and now he would pay for that weakness for the rest of his existence.

"I'm sorry Detective. Chloe. I'm so sorry!" He breathes out. The overwhelming pain and guilt he feels in this moment make his voice shake and crack on the last words.

But she doesn't react, as if not hearing what he is saying, or not wanting to hear it.

He looks at her one last time to memorise her features, her beautiful face, wondering if he will ever see her again. Then he turns away and walks out the way they first came in, possibly walking away from her life forever.

Chloe watches Lucifer leave through the corridor, without truly registering what is happening.

 _Lucifer_ … The real Devil! Her partner. The man she considers to be her best friend, her possible new lover… Oh God, no! Please, make it be only a nightmare!

Unfortunately she knows all too well that everything is mind-blowingly true. Everything he has ever said is actually true. How could she have missed it? How could she have been so blind? She knows how. She just didn't want to see the truth, even though all the pieces were there to be pieced up together. He'd never lied to her. She was the one who had been lying to herself, too afraid was she to face the facts, preferring to continue living in a safe bubble of science and logic. Her bubble was well and truly blown up now.

Her mind is reeling wildly, until she hears a low « _woosh_ » sound. The same noise she heard back on the roof when Lucifer disappeared, not so long ago. Did he disappear again? As if to prove her that he might have, the SWAT team starts filling the room, coming from the same corridor Lucifer just went in seconds ago.

She knows someone is speaking to her, but she can't hear what the cop is saying. She is still fixing that now empty corridor, only seeing in her mind the image of the Devil, with his ravaged face and his red hellish eyes.

 _This is real! This is real!_

When a paramedic crouches in front of her to check on her possible injuries, and she still can't bring herself to listen to his questions, that's when she realizes that she has to be in chock. Strangely she doesn't care. She just can't deal with all the questioning right now anyway. So she stays quiet and let him examine her without resisting.

She is mourning. Mourning her lost partner, her lost love, Lucifer Morningstar, who will never exist ever again for her. He had been replaced by that nightmarish creature. The Devil!

She doesn't know how much time passes, but at one point Dan is crouching in front of her, trying to catch her attention and take her out of her stupor, with Ella hovering by his side.

"… Chloe! Chloe! Do you hear me?" He sounds and looks very concerned.

She locks eyes with him, surprised to be able to hear his voice clearly. It feels like all she has been hearing for the last minutes are only muffled noises, as if she was deep under water and that, since the moment she saw, view, all of HIM.

She doesn't feel ready to deal with Dan's concerns right now. She tries to answer him nonetheless, to calm him down a bit.

"I'm fine… I'm fine!" It would have to do for now. She can't think of anything else to say.

She can now hear Ella's voice ordering the SWAT team to back the hell away from her crime scene. It has just been confirmed that nobody but Chloe survived the encounter among the corpses lying around and that there is no threat to be dealt with anymore.

Apparently, Dan is not ready to leave her side yet. He sits down beside her and encircles her shoulders with an arm while stroking one of hers comfortingly with his free hand. The gesture gives her a sense of reality, making her connect once again with the world around her.

After having walked around for a few minutes and analysed the crime scene, Ella comes back to them to give Daniel her preliminary conclusions.

"Man! I can't believe Chloe survived that! And since Lucifer isn't among the dead, looks like he might have survived too. I think they were standing right there in the middle of the place when Pierce's men fired on them. But I don't understand. By the number of projectiles' cases that cover the floor around the area, they must have fired hundreds of bullets. How come Chloe only received one? And what on Earth are all those feathers doing everywhere? It's as if a giant goose was shot at. A giant goose that must now be an awfully butchered one, by the look of all the blood covering the feathers and the way they have been hacked up to pieces."

At hearing Ella's words, Chloe takes a first real look around the place. There is indeed white giant feathers covering the floor into roughly a circular pattern around the place where Lucifer and she had been standing not long ago. She reaches out to take a long feather resting at her feet. It is drenched in blood and sports a couple holes in it. Her hands start shaking all of sudden as understanding hits her.

 _This is Lucifer's!_

It's coming from his wings! The wings he used to bring her to safety and then to disappear again from the crime scene, to get away from her.

She looks again at all the blood covering it. Lucifer had been injured while protecting her! He saved her life, probably not for the first time.

Her partner is hurt and possibly still bleeding, and here she is, feeling sorry for herself, unable to come to terms with something Lucifer had been telling her over and over again for the past three years.

She tries to remember if he looked injured when she last saw him leave. Even though it is hard for her to recall anything other than his Devil's appearance, she is now able to picture Lucifer Morningstar again after he'd put his hellish face away. There had definitely been pain in his eyes and in all his features. Pain and despair, angst and a strange sense of fatality. He had looked like a man whose life was about to end…

She abruptly feels all her insides twist into a painful knot. Was this she who had made him feel that way or was he hurting from the physical wounds he had taken to protect her? Neither possibilities sounded better than the other.

Whatever the cause, her partner was suffering because of her.

She stands up all of a sudden, startling Dan in the process.

Before he can ask what is going on with her, she blurts out, "I can't stay here! I have to go! I'll call you later."

And with that, she bolts towards the exit, ignoring Dan's desperate calls behind her.

She is glad to see that he doesn't pursue her though. Knowing her as he does, he probably understands that it would be vain to try and make her change her mind.

She barely spares a glance in the direction of Marcus's body sprawled on the floor, with his lifeless eyes staring at the ceiling. No, not Marcus, Cain! That story has to be true too, like everything else. She doesn't feel ready to dwell on the fact that she slept with the first murderer of humanity and even almost married him. There would be plenty of time to hate herself for that later.

Right now she has more urgent things to do. She has no idea if she'll be able to handle seeing him again so soon though. All she knows is that she needs to check on her partner and make sure he is alright.

Her partner… Can she still consider him as such after what she saw, after what she now knows to be true? Could anything ever be the same between them? Does she even want for them to get back to the way things were? And more importantly, would she ever be able to? She finds no answers to calm down her boiling mind.

She finally gets to her car and drives as fast as possible towards LUX, hoping against hopes that it is where he took refuge.

The drive to his place seems to be endless. By the time she gets there, she guesses that at least 45 minutes have passed since he disappeared on her. As well say an eternity.

Only after she steps into the elevator and hears the doors close behind her does she start realizing what she is really doing; she is going willingly into the Devil's lair! Panic begins to rise inside her, threatening to overcome her. She shuts her eyes for a moment and tries to picture her friend instead of the hellish monster that she saw only moments ago. Putting her trembling hands into her pockets, she breathes deeply a few times to calm her nerves before opening her eyes again, her panic now held under a tight grip.

She doesn't know what she expected to happen when the doors finally open, but it was certainly not to be welcomed by gut wrenching screams of pain.

She doesn't see anyone, but the screams seem to be coming from Lucifer's bedroom. Finding her courage, she walks uncertainly towards the room when she hears familiar voices talking anxiously.

"Lucifer please, try not to move! I can't do anything good if you continue squirming like that." Linda's voice, without a doubt.

"Bloody Hell! You think I do it on purpose? They are killing me!" Thunders Lucifer.

"Maze, keep him still will you? It will never heal if we don't take the bullets out." Continues Linda.

"Don't you see it doesn't work? I'll have to go retrieve one of my daggers to dig the bullets out." Maze sounds quite exasperated.

Mesmerized by what she is hearing, Chloe at last reaches the bedroom's entrance. What she sees inside instantly brings tears to her eyes and fills her with pain and empathy for her friend.

Fists clenched around the sheets, Lucifer is laying on his stomach with his wings spread wide. His beautiful wings, all bloodied and wrecked. It looks awfully painful. Maze is on her knees, straddling him and trying to force his wings into a still position. Besides the bed stands Linda who is gripping a wing and digging through a wound with pliers.

"Ah! Ah! I got one!" Rejoiced Linda.

At the exact same time Lucifer erupts into another scream of pain. "What have you done? It hurts like hell! You shouldn't be able to hurt me like that unless…"

All of a sudden, all three of them become very silent, then as one, they turn around to find Chloe standing silently at the door, looking awestruck.

Lucifer averts his gaze as soon as he sees her, but not before Chloe can see the surprise and fear in his eyes. What could he be afraid of? She? Her thoughts are interrupted by Maze who jumps out of the bed and rushes to her in a threatening way.

"Get away from here, Decker! You've hurt him enough for one day!" Maze was already leading her towards the elevator.

"No, Maze!" Screams Linda from inside the bedroom. "She needs to stay. It's the only way I'll be able to get the bullets out. Get a grip on yourself, will you!"

Maze stops in her tracks and glares at the detective. "All right! You can stay. In fact, if you dare leave this place and turn your back on him again, I'll personally go and drag you back in here myself. And I promise I won't be gentle!"

Maze forces her to sit down on the couch. It doesn't even come to Chloe's mind to try and resist as she flops down, not understanding half of what is happening.

As if wanting to at least answer part of the interrogations that were assuredly plastered all over her face, Maze spits some clues in her way. "If it wasn't for your ability to make the Devil bleed, I wouldn't allow you to be here. He can't deal with your shit and hatred right now, Decker, and I won't let you destroy him. What he needs are his friends, and I'm not sure I can still count you as one of them. So you stay here and be quiet. You can leave once we are done with his wings."

Maze doesn't let her time to reply anything and is already heading back inside the bedroom. Totally dumfounded, Chloe stays like that a long moment, unmoving, mouth half opened, and listening to Lucifer's screams of pain. She is now overtly crying. She can feel the overpowering need of taking Lucifer in her arms and sooth his suffering, but she understands that she lost that right when she as good as turned her back on him when she saw the truth. And that loss hurt, more than she could have imagined. Would she ever have the chance to embrace her friend again? She hopes so with all her heart.

She doesn't understand what Maze meant when saying that she can make the Devil bleed, but she knows he is suffering because of her and her rejecting him. And that's all she needs to know for now.

Linda obviously knew about Lucifer's identity before today and is okay with it. It gives her hope that she herself could overcome her first shock and come to peace with what he is. But how did Linda do to stop seeing only the Devil and be able to look at him as before?

She is then reminded of the answer she gave him last night when he tried again to tell her that he is indeed the Devil.

« _No you're not! Not to me._ »

She meant it at the time, really meant it. Because deep down she knew him, knew that he was a good man and that she loved him for who he was in spite of whatever he might have done in his past.

In that instant, she realizes that she still knows him, and has known who he truly is for a long time now, even though she wasn't aware of his real identity. Does it really matter where he comes from and what he is? It strangely doesn't feel so important anymore. Her friend is suffering right now, physically and emotionally. She had rejected him and seen in his eyes the pain it did to him.

She remembered the hope and love she had seen in his eyes last night before they kissed. He had believed her, believed that she truly loved the man he was in spite of everything. But she had destroyed that belief, destroyed what they had, with her fear, her inability to understand, and to see beyond his appearance.

She finds herself swearing to make everything in her power to make it up to him, to prove that he can trust her with what he is. None of it really mattered after all. None of it should change the way she feels about him.

She could already feel her love for him blossoming again and fill her entire being.

* * *

 **Author's note: I hope it gives you a certain sense of closure following that horrible cliff-hanger. Writing it did help me. Please let me know if it was to your liking. Thanks for reading.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Author's note: By popular request, here is the sequel to what was supposed to be only an OS. I too felt like having a better ending for this story. I even cried a bit writing it. It was quite therapeutic! :) I wrote it quickly in one day to make everybody happy, including me. So it has not been Beta read. Sorry for any mistakes, English is not my first language. Enjoy!**

* * *

He feels completely drained out. After more than an hour of literal torture trying to get those bullets out, he is left trembling under painful spasms going through his wings and entire body. He seems unable to loosen the tight grip he has on the sheet under him. Damn it, it hurt! There is nothing to be done about that though, but wait for it to pass as he heals. It shouldn't be too long since it wasn't a celestial weapon that did it. Linda talked about going to get him some pills at the drugstore, but he is not sure it would do any good.

He tried to fold his wings away to be more comfortable, but any insignificant movement of the bloody appendages sends him into dizzying unbearable pain. So he settled for not moving at all and just hopes to heal soon.

A mad chuckle escapes his lips. He shouldn't complain about the pain. After all, it is more than well deserved. Did he not just killed a human being? No, he corrects himself, more than one, when he could have done differently and spare their lives. He is ashamed to realise that he can't even say how many he killed out there. There is no remnant of doubts in him anymore; he does deserve his Devil's face! He really is the monster they all say he is. And he who thought that he was becoming a better man! He had been badly mistaken. There is no way he can lie to himself anymore.

And Chloe knows it too now, she has seen him…

He chuckles madly once again. It feels as if reality is falling apart around him. At least he has the pain to keep him grounded somehow, to keep his mind from spiralling out of control, something to focus on.

He knows the detective is still here, for he can't feel himself start to heal yet. He is not sure why she came though. Probably to do her job and question him about what happened back there. Or maybe to question him about everything that went on behind her back during their partnership. That would be just like her, to be pushed by the need to get answers. Now that her first shock at seeing him is over, she has to be so mad! For everything he hid from her, for making her fall for the Devil…

He finds her very brave to be here to confront the Devil. He releases the sheet around his hand only to reach to his hair and grip it in desperation. From now on, he would forever only be that to her; the Devil!

Well, that's who he was after all. He had his Devil's face back to remind him of that fact.

Even if by some miracle she could someday see beyond that and consider him again as a friend, their love affair was definitely over for good now. She would never look at him with that spark of love in her eyes ever again. How could he resent her though? Even Linda would certainly not sleep with him anymore now that she knows, now that she'd seen. How could anyone?

He had been a fool! How could he have believed for an instant that she could really love him for who he is? She fell for that other version of him that he had created and had himself foolishly believed in for a time. But it had all been only an illusion. He knows what he is now. Time to come back to reality. But the fall was vertiginous and the landing agonizingly painful.

He can hear quiet talking in the living room, even though he can't comprehend the words. He hopes that Maze will be able to make the detective leave. Not because of the physical pain, but because he is not sure he can bare to see her accusing gaze right now, her hatred, and fear of him. He doesn't feel like being interrogated either. Yet, if that's what she needs at the moment, he knows he would do it for her. He would do anything for her.

* * *

"How is he doing?" Chloe doesn't even try to control the crushing desperation that transpires in her words.

It had been the longest hour of her life. To hear Lucifer scream and growl in pain almost without interruption had felt like pure torture to her. Around the end, only faint whimpers could be heard coming from the room, as Lucifer probably couldn't find any strength left in him to continue screaming. Now that it is all over, her face is bathed in tears and she feels as drained as he certainly does himself.

"He doesn't have anything left in him. Wings wounds hurt the most and we didn't go easy on him. Angel's wings are very sensible. He needs to rest now. Go home, Decker!" Maze's tone leaves no place for arguments as she stands nose to nose with the detective.

Chloe has absolutely no intention of letting herself be intimidated so easily.

"I'm not leaving before I see him, and not even a hell forged demon will prevent me from doing so. I'll go through you if I have to, Maze." She stands her ground and clenches her jaws, ready to fight her way to the bedroom if need be.

Maze snarls at her. "He is better off without you, Decker. Haven't you done enough damages already? I told you, he can't deal with those human feelings of yours right now. You'll have to do it by yourself. He has enough to deal with at the moment. He doesn't need to see resentment and hatred directed at him."

Chloe's face falls. "I don't hate him! Is that what you think? What he thinks?" Oh God no!

For the first time, Maze looks uncertain of her assertions. "Isn't it why you're here? To confront him with what he held from you?"

Chloe can't prevent a sob from escaping her lips. "Nooo! I… care for him. A lot! I just want to make sure he is ok. I just want to… make it better."

Maze doesn't feel any pity for the detective. She has broken Lucifer's heart when refusing to see him for anything else than the Devil. Lucifer has not said a lot about the way Chloe discovered his true self, but the demon understands enough from the devastation she saw in his face to know that the detective has broken him.

Even though, she can acknowledge that Lucifer deserves at least some apologies from her. And to learn that she feels bad about some of it could possibly do him good. She thinks that Chloe has some nerves standing up to her like that, and there is that glimmer of something in her eyes that tells Maze that maybe not everything is lost for the Devil after all.

"You better not hurt him more than you already did, or I'm the one you'll have to answer to, Decker!"

The Devil's former bodyguard reluctantly steps aside to let her pass.

"You can't stay for long though, he needs to rest, and he can't regenerate while you're around."

Chloe's eyes snap back to the demon's. "Why is that? You also said I can make him bleed. What's that crazy idea?"

Maze understands that she needs to explain some of it otherwise the detective might insist in staying around.

"Only the truth Chloe. For obscure reasons, Lucifer is not immortal around you and can be hurt and killed by human weapons. That's how you've been able to make him bleed at the beginning of your partnership when you shot him and why those bullets could hurt him today. Now he can't heal while you're around and he is suffering even more because of it."

Chloe's eyes widen in horror at the thought of making him vulnerable that way.

 _«You're making me vulnerable… »_

That's what he said, a long time ago. It clearly meant a lot more than what she thought at the time. In spite of that, he stayed by her side and continued working with her when he should obviously have gone away long ago. And he was still protecting her, despite the danger to himself. An immortal being risking his life to save a mere human… How crazy was that?

She already knew she was responsible for his suffering, but apparently didn't even know the beginning of it.

Chloe tries to gather herself together. She wipes the tears on her face with her sleeve and realises that her hands are still shaking slightly. She knows it's not from fear of the Devil, but from fear for him.

Chloe barely registers Linda saying something about going out for supplies before she hears the elevator's doors close behind her.

Her gaze is fixed on the bedroom's entrance. Now she feels unsecured, unsure of herself. What if he doesn't want to hear her out, what if he is mad at her, and has lost his faith in her? He thought her to be special. She has just proven to him how wrong he was.

She tries to dry her eyes once more, then takes a deep shuddering breath before walking slowly towards his room.

The curtains are shut, but there is still enough light in the room to see him clearly. Her breath is immediately taken away by the sight of divinity. When she first saw his wings earlier, she was too shocked by the horrible scene to really appreciate the sight. Now she can.

Lucifer is lying on his right side, away from her, with his wings spread out behind him. _His magnificent wings_ … The celestial vibes coming from them is unmistakable. She feels completely awe-struck.

After a few seconds of admiration, her brain registers again all the blood covering the feathers and the damages done to them. Tears threaten to overcome her once more. She walks silently around the bed to take a better look at him.

Lucifer's eyes are tightly shut and his jaws strongly clenched under what can only be unbearable pain, if his grimacing face is any indication. He looks as tight as a bow string, with his fists clinging the sheet and his back arching. She notices perspiration on his face, his breathing is coming in short little gasps, and he is slightly shaking under the tension in his body.

She can hardly stand to see him in such suffering. The tears she has been able to contain until then are suddenly released and run along her cheeks.

Already, she can hardly picturing him with his Devil's face anymore. Once more, to her, he is only Lucifer, a man she deeply cares about.

She crouches slowly in front of him and tenderly puts a hand over one of his.

His eyes open up instantly to reveal a maelstrom of emotions; surprise, fear, uncertainty, desperation? She is not sure. All she knows is that she wants to try and appease all those horrible feelings that are eating him up.

She smiles at him softly through her tears to let him know that she is there for him. To her surprise, he turns his gaze away from her. He doesn't try to pry his hand away though. She hopes it's not because he is hurting too much to move it.

"What are you doing here?" His voice sounds raw from all the screaming. "Looking for answers I guess!"

The bitterness in his words takes her by surprise. But what else did she expect really? She deserves it. But now isn't the time for self-pity. She has a point to make.

"I do have a lot of questions of course, but that's not why I'm here now."

Lucifer has clearly not been expecting that answer. He chances a quick glance towards her, as if trying to decipher what she has in store for him.

Eyes averted again, he continues. "Then what do you want? To hit a man already down? Or to torture me?" And his gaze lowers to their joined hands, as if she were already torturing him. Then his voice becomes only a whisper. "Or to tell me what a monster I am? Believe me, I already know."

She bits her trembling lips. "No, Lucifer… that's not… I came to apologize."

Lucifer looks genuinely puzzled. "What for?" Still, he can't bring himself to look at her.

"I understand why you were afraid of showing me, Lucifer. You thought I would betray that trust by running away from you, and that's obviously what you think I did. But I'm here…"

He doesn't answer, stubbornly keeping his eyes away from her.

"Look at me, Lucifer." She says softly.

"I can't!" He chokes out, voice trembling.

She cups his face with her free hand and turns his head towards her. He doesn't resist, and at last their teary eyes lock together.

"I'm not proud of how I handled learning the truth about you. It felt like too much at the time. I guess I needed time to process everything. And I suppose I'll still need a lot of time to wrap my head around it. But what I already understand, what I know deep in my heart and believe without a single doubt, is that whatever you look like, whatever you did in your past, the Lucifer I know is a good man, not a monster. And I am deeply sorry that I let you think otherwise. I'm sorry I hurt you, Lucifer!" A little sob escapes her trembling lips.

He is looking at her as if he can't believe his ears.

"But… you saw what I am, what I'm capable of, and what I did. How can you still think…" He can't go on, unable to find the words.

"Yes, you killed some men, but they deserved it, and you did it to protect me, and yourself. Pierce… Cain, would never have stopped hunting us until he got what he wanted. You had no choice."

Lucifer was clearly trying to process her words. She lets it sink in for a moment. Then she caresses his cheek with her thumb to bring his gaze back to hers. When he is once again focussing on her, she continues in a softer tone.

"I still believe what I told you last night, Lucifer. To me, you'll never be the Devil. And I plan on proving to you that you are much more than that. You are Lucifer Morningstar… my friend…, my partner…, and I am deeply and thoroughly in love with you!"

He just can't believe her words! It all has to be a dream! He grips her hand back to make sure she is really there, that he didn't imagine her saying that she loves him, even after everything. He tries to speak but nothing comes out. She is still cupping his face, stroking his cheek, his lips, as if she knows that he needs a physical proof that everything really is happening.

She is overtly crying now, without even trying to stop the flow of tears cascading along her beautiful face. She chances a smile at him and he answers her with the most relieved and loving smile ever.

She leans towards him, approaching her face slowly to let him the chance to pull away if he doesn't want her. Instead, she sees him part his lips to welcome her. She captures his lips in a sweet, caring kiss that also conveys all the love she feels for him. She feels him respond eagerly. She lingers there, savouring the feel of joining and completeness.

She moves her hand at the back of his neck to grip his hair as if afraid he might disappear. When they slightly pull away to look at each other's adoring gazes, they both let escape a wet sob of relief. Instinctively, their foreheads come to rest together so they can bath in their closeness.

They are now both giggling softly, trying to wrap their heads around what's happening.

Lucifer brings a hand to her face to caress her tenderly while looking at her in wonder.

"I thought I had lost you!" Her voice cracks once more. "It was the worst feeling in the world!"

He chuckles slightly through his tears. "Tell me about it!"

They giggle again a little, even though they both feel like crying.

"Now I have to go if you want to heal." Leaving him is the last thing she wants to do right now but she knows she has to.

"No! Please, stay!" There is so much desperation in his voice that it breaks her heart.

"But you're suffering because of me! I can't allow it, Lucifer."

He shakes his head vehemently. "Seeing you leave me would hurt a thousand times more than if you stay. I have all the time in the world to heal and anyway, it won't take more than a day for me to get back to my devilish handsome self. Please! Stay!"

It doesn't take more to convince her. "I'll stay for a while then." Her smile splits into a radiant one. "I'll leave later once you're asleep. But I'll be back soon enough afterwards, I promise. Nothing will keep me away from you for too long."

And to his surprise, she gets into bed and lays facing him. They embrace each other gently and resume their position with their foreheads together. Chloe interlaces the fingers of her left hand with his right, and with her other hand, starts making soothing patterns over his back, arms, face, and hair. Soon, she adds soft kisses over his temples, cheeks, and lips to take the pain away.

It seems to be working, for she can feel the tension ease slowly from his body and his trembling subsides. After a time, his breathing evens out and he looks peaceful.

Lucifer feels like he is in heaven, everything seeming to be too good to be true. Now he believes that there might still be hope for him, that maybe, he isn't a complete monster. After all, Chloe Decker could never love a monster. If she can forgive him for the horrors he did, maybe he could forgive himself someday too. Her trust in him had already helped heal him once, maybe her love could heal him once again.

He finally falls asleep with the love of his existence in his arms, thinking that there still might be some hopes of redemption for the Devil.

* * *

 **Author's note: I hope you appreciate this ending. Personally I feel more at peace with it that way. There is still hope yet for another season, I'm not giving up! Please tell me if you liked my story, it will help me deal with the loss. Thanks for reading!**


End file.
